Easter Celebrations

Right around Easter, Ashton finally decided that he was ready to hold his own bottle (7 months old).  But, he's still smiling even when he's eating!

 We squeezed in a lot of celebrating this year.  Luckily, most of it was before Easter since Tristan flew out on Easter Sunday for some training.  We started things off by visiting Tristan's mom at her house where the boys got to do their first egg hunt of the season.  The next morning we visited her ward for their Easter breakfast and egg hunt.  It was wet and rainy, so it ended up being an indoor hunt and the boys had a great time!  (We were so busy we didn't end up catching any pictures.)

Then our ward had a small gathering of people who got together to do a hunt at our church building.  Ethan did a good job of helping Carter out since he's younger and still getting the hang of it all.

 Easter morning was a busy one for us since Tristan had to fly out in the late morning.  The bunny stopped by with beach buckets and toys for the kids to get them ready for summer.

 Carter checking out what's in some of those Easter eggs.

 Carter was curious about his bucket, too!  Some new bibs for eating solid food...

 and some new sippy cups!  He's becoming a big boy!

 He had fun watching his brothers, too.

 Then we did a quick egg hunt in our back yard before Tristan got picked up for the airport.  Carter finally started to get the hang of it and did a good job of finding his own eggs.

 Time to check out what's in those eggs!

 Ashton loved the eggs, too, and had fun chasing them around since they were so rolly poly.

 Got one!

 After Tristan left I spend the morning getting the boys ready for church.  While I was getting ready, Ashton found a piece of candy that I had missed on the ground.  It was quite a mess.  I guess we know he likes chocolate and peanut butter (and yes, I was a little worried about that)!

 The boys looked so cute in the matching ties that the Easter bunny delivered to them.

After church we went to my mom and dad's house for dinner and what else?  Another egg hunt!  The boys enjoyed being able to be out in the sunshine for this one.

 The bunny was a little trickier at Papa's house!

 Papa decided to help them out in finding some of the extra tricky ones.

 Ashton had fun watching from the sidelines this year.

 They boys love the loot at Papa's house...change for their piggy banks!  My grandparents started that tradition when I was little.  Apparently the bunny got the memo and is now carrying it on at Papa's.  ;)

 The boys had Easter baskets waiting for them there as well.  I couldn't catch the boys checking out theirs, but I did manage to get one of Ashton.

We had a busy couple of days with all of our Easter celebrations!  We were sorry that we didn't get to spend the day with Tristan, but we were grateful that we had several days celebrating with the family and friends in our lives!  Most importantly, it was a special day spent reflecting on the love our Savior has for us and how dependent we are on Him to overcome the weaknesses in our lives.  I'm so grateful for the gift the atonement is in our lives and for the ability we have to be together as an eternal family because of it!

A Trip to the Zoo

We decided to take the boys up to the zoo one day in April when the weather was especially nice.  It was good to get back out and enjoy some fresh air as a family.

 Ashton was really interested in the sting rays.  He even reached in and touched a couple of them!

 The aquarium is always a favorite for all of the boys.

 Ashton loved the shark tank.  We had fun sitting and watching the sharks swim by for quite a while.

 The jelly fish!

 We tried to get a good picture here, but this was the best we could do....

 Ethan cooling off by the wolf exhibit.  The boys had fun howling at the wolves.  Not sure how much the wolves like it.  Lol!

 Tristan must have thought this was funny because I found it on our camera after the zoo.

 Our two little hermit crabs trying on some shells.

 Ashton did a really good job at the zoo.  He had fun and was really cheerful.  I'm glad that he's so laid back and just rolls with it!

 A trip to the zoo isn't complete without a showing from the peacock!!

It was a great day, followed up by Sonic, of course!  It's always the perfect ending to a day up in Tacoma!

Beginning of April

Ashton is quite the character.  He is very playful and silly and he LOVES the water.  Bath time is is favorite thing--other than playing in some other kind of water.

 One afternoon the boys made these flower snacks with M & Ms on them.  They loved picking the     M & Ms off and licking the peanut butter off of them.

 Just a picture of my boys!  Kelly got these matching shirts for Ethan and Carter when Carter was born. Now we are on to another set of brothers wearing them!

 The boys love our new neighborhood.  It's great for bike rides.  One afternoon my dad came over for dinner and we took the boys out for a little ride.  They especially love riding down this slight hill.

 Ashton had fun watching them from his stroller.

 Right behind our house there is a green belt.  There are ducks that like to rest there so the boys love to ride their bikes down and see the ducks.  Papa was giving Carter a lift  to take a peek.

 Ethan's bike got stuck in a puddle on the way out.  He kept spinning and spinning his tire and finally decided he would have to get his feet dirty and push it out.

 The ride back up the hill required a little push!

 Ashton decided he had had enough of being a passive observer and wanted to start participating!  One day he just started getting up on his knees like this and also in the push up position.  The beginning of mobility!

 He also got really good at sitting up on his own right about this time, too.  Busy, busy!

 I love this one, because Carter is constantly putting his hand on Ashton's head like this.  It's really sweet--as long as he is being gentle.  :)

 Carter is becoming such a big boy....

 Ashton has the best facial expressions.  Strangers comment on it all the time.  He's such a sweetie.

 He also CONSTANTLY sticks his tongue out of his mouth.  Especially when someone is talking to him.  I guess it's his way of communicating!

 General Conference is the first weekend of April.  On Saturday morning the boys stayed in their jammies for the morning session and worked on some coloring and activity packets while we watched. We were nice and cozy with our fireplace going.  They did a pretty good job of staying calm and quiet.

 The boys have also been busy earning prizes for good behavior.  These magnifying glasses were one of the prizes they chose.  They loved taking them outside and looking at bugs.

 Ethan and Carter love playing with Ashton.  I think they are just as anxious as he is for him to be able to participate in all the fun.

 Here's Ashton in the push up position he was trying out a lot about this time.

 We also started discovering frogs in our backyard, which the boys love, of course.  They are constantly searching for them and catching them.  We even found a salamander back there one afternoon.

It was so nice to start to feel the first hints of Spring and to have a fun new neighborhood to explore and enjoy!